Pompeii oven - too thick? Pompeii Oven Construction Discuss Pompeii oven - too thick? in the Pizza Oven Design and Installation forums; I love researching the historical posts on FB... It's amazing how many times we can go around on very similar ...

[SpringJim]

I love researching the historical posts on FB...

It's amazing how many times we can go around on very similar but important issues....
....the truth is out there.

Thanks to all those old time FB members from '05 who still contribute and stay in touch! Thanks.... David, Rick, Bob, Les, Wade, Luis, Marcel, Kiwi, Michael, Jim, Keith, Southpaw, and of course James (and all the others surely missed !)

This collective knowledge, experience and opinions is a valuable energy and inspiration within the growing FB community.

[dmun]

Since Jim brought up this historical thread, I should add that I no longer think the half-brick thick dome is too thick. The additional thickness adds only a little to heat up time, and adds a great deal to dome strength and stability.

[edschmidt]

My 36" oven has approx 6" of mass and I LOVE having the ability to throw a pizza party on sat. night, Wake up at 10:30 on sun. (sorry pastor) and throw in a roast which will be done around 6pm sun afternoon. I dont bake a ton of bread, but realistically a full burn of seasoned hardwood is going to take a good 2 hrs. before the coals are gone. Why not store all of that heat?

[gjbingham]

edschmidt,
I concur completely. Please explain your six inches of mass. That sound dirty, but for the time being, I'm not joking.

[edschmidt]

I cast my pieces at 4 in. and added an additional 2" of remesh reinforced concrete on top. And the other thing I measure with displacement.

[Barberque boy]

I'm curious do you support the idea of wrapping the oven with wire and mortar for strength and/or mass or just support the idea of 4 1/2" thick fire brick.

"Since Jim brought up this historical thread, I should add that I no longer think the half-brick thick dome is too thick. The additional thickness adds only a little to heat up time, and adds a great deal to dome strength and stability."

[Smiriglio]

Has anybody used the thinner fire bricks to make the dome. Although they do not cost any less, their use may provide less mass and more room for insulation. Instead of laying the bricks in the "classic" manor, I am thinking of making a wooden form that I can lay the fire bricks on [like tile] and then cast the entire dome in a few inches of thermal cement. I would also build an outer dome to allow for the addition of the vermiculite fill. Is this nuts?

[dmun]

I don't know what you would gain from building a dome from splits and covering it with concrete. Castible refractory is more expensive per unit of mass than firebricks in the US, particularly if you use the recommended stainless needles to prevent cracking. If the goal is just reducing mass, you also reduce strength, and the ability to hold heat.

[Smiriglio]

Thanks, I thought it was nuts too.